The Kurds of Turkey, Syria and Iraq have been central to the fight against the extreme savagery of Daesh yet are now facing the barbarism of President Erdogan in his all-out war against the Kurds. In Turkey, Kurds face massive repression with Erdogan having ordered the arrest and detention of hundreds of thousands of opposition politicians, journalists, trade unionists, human rights activists and many others.

The brutal war on the Kurdish population has resulted in thousands murdered and cities destroyed. In Syria, Turkey has illegally invaded Afrin and committed acts of genocide and ethnic cleansing and atrocious human rights abuses against the Kurdish population, and in Iraq the Kurdish population live under the very real threat that Turkey will invade.

The situation is critical. Yet in Northern Syria the Kurds are developing a true progressive society that is centres on direct democracy, ecology, human rights and women’s liberation based on the teaching of the jailed Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan.

Join speakers who have seen the society working first-hand and discuss how trade unions can support the Kurds in defending women’s liberation, democracy and equality in an area ravaged by violence repression and persecution.

Fighting fascism in the Middle East – Ocalan, the Kurds and defending the women’s revolution.

EMERGENCY APPEAL FOR AFRIN

Life in Afrin

Weekly News Briefing

Jeremy Corbyn issues statement of support for the National Demo

Message from Jeremy Corbyn to Kurdish national demonstration in London:
“I’m sorry not to be able to be with you today, but I send a message of solidarity with today’s demonstration, and with the Kurdish people, under sustained attack across the Middle East.
The conflict in Syria has been the trigger for an onslaught against the Kurdish people, who are defending their autonomy and their rights.
We are watching closely the alarming events that have been unfolding in Turkey in recent weeks, including the killing of civilians and destruction of Kurdish homes.
Any negotiated settlement of the Syrian conflict must include peace and justice for the Kurds, including in Turkey. And the Turkish government needs as a matter of urgency to restart the peace process with the Kurds and respect the rights of all its people.
We call for an end to repression of the Kurds and justice for the Kurdish people throughout the Middle East.”

Destruction and Repression in North Kurdistan

Freedom for Ocalan!

On the 19th anniversary of his kidnap and imprisonment by Turkey, we renew our call for Abdullah Ocalan to be freed as part of a peaceful solution to the Kurdish question.